Filed under: Computers | Tags: meetings, note-taking, pen-computing, sales force, tablet pc, tablets
Tablet PCs have been around for a number of years now. Very few people seem to use them, mostly because tablets cost more than your average laptop. We believe the tablet has a great place in business and it can help you and your staff be more productive.
First, we want to make sure and explain what a Tablet PC is. Basically, it’s a computer that you can write on. The computer comes with a special pen that you can use as a mouse and that can draw on the computer in certain programs. Otherwise, it’s a normal computer like a laptop. Many Tablet PCs ARE laptops. They have a standard keyboard and fold open just like you are used to, but they can also have the screen flipped around to form a flat writing tablet. They also include a special pen to write on that surface. It’s these added features that drive up the cost.
Next, we need to understand why tablets haven’t sold well. In our opinion, there are two reasons. The first is that tablets are more expensive. The cheapest tablets start at $1,000-1,500 and can head on up over $2,000 easily. Considering that quality laptops can be had in the $5-700 range that’s a big price difference. You’ve got to be able to cost-justify that difference. We will list some differentiators here, if you need help determining how these uses will impact your business process and what the real value to using tablets for your business is, then contact us and we can help you make the decision.
The other main reason why tablets haven’t caught on is a misperception on how they can be used. Most people’s experience with tablet PCs is in movies or on television shows like CSI, Chuck, and Dollhouse (all of which feature tablets being used prominently). In all of these cases, the tablet is used as just a writing surface. There’s no mention or awareness that the tablet might also be used as a normal laptop. The idea of writing everything can seem daunting to users, and so, this becomes another reason to avoid the form factor.
We are here to tell you that there’s real value in using a tablet in business. While there are many special industry uses (medical, graphics, design, etc.), we will focus on the most general of use. If you sit in on more than one meeting a day, then you NEED a tablet.
Here’s why. The tablet will let you take notes more easily, reproduce and store those notes, and share them with other people. That’s it. That’s the reason. The tablet will let you do all of this without trying to change your note-taking behavior. You don’t have to try and type in a meeting (often considered rude). You don’t have to learn any new system. You just have to open a program, flip the screen around, pull out the pen, and start scribbling like you normally do.
Every tablet PC ships with a free program called Journal which presents you with a blank sheet of paper (the paper can even be adjusted to look like graph paper, a legal pad, a to-do list, or other choices). Just write, draw diagrams, whatever you normally do. There’s an erase button that turns the pen into an eraser if you make a mistake. When you need more paper, just push the scroll down button on the tablet and a new sheet will appear.
If you want to get fancy, the tablet lets you select parts of your notes and then copy and paste it. I find this really useful when I’m drawing diagrams for a customer and I want to demonstrate several examples. There are more features, but they often just get in the way. Use the tablet for digital paper and you really have something here. You see the value isn’t in the way you record the information. The value is in what you do with it later on.
When you are done with your meeting you write a name in the space at the top of the screen, tap the save icon and make sure you save it wherever you want to keep the file on your computer (I use a folder that syncs to my server when I’m in the office). That’s it. It’s pretty simple.
The advantage you have over paper is that you can now e-mail a copy of your notes to other participants in the meeting. You have a copy saved electronically (and backed up if you save the file to a server). This makes it easy to attach to an electronic record, be it a project plan, client contact, or just the meeting on your calendar. You can always find your notes. Never go searching through notebooks again or have to transcribe meeting notes. You can e-mail off a copy of a diagram to your technical team, or display it on a projector during a subsequent meeting.
I have had clients call me after a year or so and say they are ready to go on a project we haven’t discussed in months. Because I use my tablet, I am always able to find the notes of my meeting and discuss intelligently the next steps to move them to a successful project.
I have used the tablet (connected to a projector) as a whiteboard in meetings. Everything I draw on the screen is saved into a file (without buying a multi-thousand dollar smartboard).
Tablets have all sorts of other exciting potential capabilities. There are programs like OneNote that offer the opportunity to do much more than just use the tablet as digital paper. These items are nice, but the simple greatest advantage to a tablet is to make all of my hand-written notes instantly digital, savable, searchable, and reproducible. It saves a great deal of time, increases productivity, and results in better meetings.
We recommend tablets for all sales people and consultants especially. They spend a lot of time in meetings and transcribing notes of client needs and desires takes a lot of time. Reduce their time spent on record-keeping while improving the accuracy of their information with a tablet. Just attach the journal file to the meeting record in the calendar and they have all of the information that they wrote down. Typing on a laptop is often seen as rude and the upright screen blocks eye contact with the prospect or customer. This affects the rapport being built with the client. A tablet, on the other hand, lies flat and let’s the salesperson look at the customer easily.
If your executive team spends a lot of time in meetings, if you have a sales force who meets face to face with clients, if you have anyone on your team who spends a lot of time in meetings; you need to consider purchasing tablets for them. These staff members likely already have laptops. You need to determine if the cost difference makes sense. There are a variety of tablet makes and models on the market. If you need help, we’ll be happy to evaluate the cost/benefit for you and determine the right path for you. Contact us today.
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